Monthly Archives: October 2011

Ok, so the only news, it would appear, this week revolved around Apple. Even more so than usual. As always, it is sad when anyone passes too early. So for that, I am sad for Steve Jobs and his family.

Now, with that out of the way, I cannot get on the bandwagon with the Mac fanboys and fangirls. Think different, their old logo goes. More like don’t think at all, let us do it, and overpay us for our ideas. This is what gets me. Why would you ever want someone to give you their opinion or vision on how something should work? Why would you not want the freedom to do what you want to your device.

Then you see Apple sue sue sue. Next up is the Samsung Galaxy 10.1 tablets they are trying to say Samsung copied the design. Hmm, looks similar, but come on. Apple burns at me, since much like Disney, all their success comes on something free (Disney–public domain princess stories; Apple–Unix). Their success comes on the back of others, but they want to eliminate all the competition out there. Oh, and copy, yes COPY, eliminates of Android in their newest iOS release. That, I cannot get behind.

And the most hypocritical thing of all is their focus on education. They make grants, give away hardware, all to brainwash teachers (and I DO mean brainwash!) to get their hardware in schools. Ugg. I hate it. When we should focus on open source, open standards, and collaboration (STEM, anyone?), we fill schools with Mac products. Very, very frustrating. So while I am sad for the man, I cannot join in with my jeans and black turtleneck to support what he stood for and his opinions.

So Google, along with Microsoft, Gaggle, and other vendors allow you to use online collaborative documents. Things like word processing, spreadsheets, forms, and more can be shared among colleagues, students, parents, and other folks. I see some of our teachers lining up subject matter experts to collaborate on projects with students. Never before in our lives could we access and share data the way we can now. But, as with any technology, we really need to stop and think about what we post before we post it. As we tell our children/students, once it’s there, it will always be there. There is no delete on the web.

So in that spirit, what should you not post online?

An student identifiable information. Things like a list of students with learning disabilities. Modifications given to students.

Grades. Pretty self-explanatory there.

Addresses, phone numbers, etc. Again, pretty self-explanatory.

Any private notes that you would not generally share.

I think of all these things, the Exceptional Children related topics scare me the most. As our EC personnel often travel between schools, they want to share data, and online documents seem like a good way to do that. However, again, once it is out there, it always will be. With schools sued over leaks of this type of information, putting it online, to the cloud, is not a good idea. Always think about the repercussions if you choose to put any data out there. Would you want it in the newspaper? On the local news.

One of Google’s ongoing projects is their efforts to digitize the world. By that, I especially mean print media. Yes, all those books, whether in the public domain or elsewhere, Google wants to digitize, then allow ready access to these resources. As a techno-liberal, I LOVE seeing this data. So many real world things you can do with it in the classroom. In a generation where data rules, we need to make sure our students can interpret data and draw conclusions from it. Ngram Viewer provides a free and powerful way to do it. How? Here are some things I did with my seven year old…

our first search (in the image) was Hurricane vs Raleigh. You see the peek in the mid 1800s for Raleigh. I asked my daughter, what was happening at that point in history. Her response–was that the Civil War? So, proud Daddy, I knew she could tell me (although maybe not in as much detail as an older student) that more books were written using the word Raleigh due to the events in history at that time.

our second search–hockey vs baseball. Both started on the bottom, then started moving up in the early 1900s. Why, I asked my daughter again. “They weren’t invented yet, Daddy.” Awesome!

Just some basics, but think of how you could use this in a science class. Maybe at looking at diseases or advances in technology. Social studies with historical events. Literature. The list goes on and on. And a good primary source of information as well.

I really like my Samsung Galaxy Honeycomb tablet. The whole Honeycomb UI speaks to me, as intuitive, clear, and crisp. While all apps will work on it, I really like seeing the Honeycomb optimized apps. FINALLY, Google released their Honeycomb optimized Docs app. Gotta say, they once again hit the nail on the head with this one.

Things I like:

three panes, one with my labels/collections, one with the documents in that label/collection, and then the preview pane–which I am liking more and more

Having a real preview in that preview pane–it makes so much sense on a tablet–see what you want before you open it

Having a full screen to throw yourself into. You cannot underestimate the clean, ‘dull’ UI of Google, and for Docs, this works!

I really cannot wait to see what else will come out on Honeycomb. If your school has Honeycomb tablets, and you use Google Docs, this will be great for you. Imagine a student, having an uncluttered workspace for their notes, stories, or whatever else they need.

Don’t you love free? Free as in beer, this time. Google, makers of all things good, has announced they are giving away Sketch-Up pro licenses to states for K-12 schools. You know, the Pro license that runs $495 usually. Yeah, free in that case sounds good. So Google, who some (Oracle, Apple, Microsoft) would have you believe as evil, is giving the Pro licenses away. All you need to snag one is check this page (http://sites.google.com/site/sketchupprok12statewidegrant/how-to-sign-up) and see if your state signed up for it yet. About 30 did so far. Then they will give you the license, and you are on your way. With the focus on STEM, these tools definitely help engage students, so go out and get your license now!

We all should know that the most worthwhile activities for students are those that actively engage them in the higher level thinking activities on Bloom’s Taxonomy. Those where students create and analyze content. What better way to do this than actual tools where students can construct buildings and other three-dimensional objects. Google’s SketchUp program allows you to do just that, and, if you follow the link below, many states can now access the Professional version free! I assume that eventually all 50 states will offer this free. A huge giveaway from Google, especially with more and more ways to use Sketch Up. We just recently received our markers (a 3d block) to use with SMART Document cameras in their mixed reality mode. Think 3d glasses for a SMART camera. Cool!